cannabisnews.com: UN Backs Drug Decriminalization In Drug Report
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UN Backs Drug Decriminalization In Drug Report
Posted by CN Staff on June 24, 2009 at 11:38:59 PT
By Ryan Grim
Source: Huffington Post
World -- In an about face, the United Nations on Wednesday lavishly praised drug decriminalization in its annual report on the state of global drug policy. In previous years, the UN drug czar had expressed skepticism about Portugal's decriminalization, which removed criminal penalties in 2001 for personal drug possession and emphasized treatment over incarceration. The UN had suggested the policy was in violation of international drug treaties and would encourage "drug tourism."
But in its 2009 World Drug Report, the UN had little but kind words for Portugal's radical (by U.S. standards) approach. "These conditions keep drugs out of the hands of those who would avoid them under a system of full prohibition, while encouraging treatment, rather than incarceration, for users. Among those who would not welcome a summons from a police officer are tourists, and, as a result, Portugal's policy has reportedly not led to an increase in drug tourism," reads the report. "It also appears that a number of drug-related problems have decreased."In its upbeat appraisal of Portugal's policy, the UN finds itself in agreement with Salon's Glenn Greenwald. The report, released at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., also puts to rest concerns that decriminalization doesn't comply with international treaties, which prevent countries from legalizing drugs.U.S. Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske is scheduled to appear at the announcement of the report. (He has said "decriminalization" is not "in my vocabulary.")"The International Narcotics Control Board was initially apprehensive when Portugal changed its law in 2001 (see their annual report for that year), but after a mission to Portugal in 2004, it "noted that the acquisition, possession and abuse of drugs had remained prohibited," and said "the practice of exempting small quantities of drugs from criminal prosecution is consistent with the international drug control treaties," reads a footnote to the report.The UN report also dives head first into the debate over full drug legalization. Last year's World Drug Report ignored the issue entirely, save for a reference to Chinese opium policy in the 19th Century. This year's report begins with a lengthy rebuttal of arguments in favor of legalization. "Why unleash a drug epidemic in the developing world for the sake of libertarian arguments made by a pro-drug lobby that has the luxury of access to drug treatment?" argues the report.But the UN also makes a significant concession to backers of legalization, who have long argued that it is prohibition policies that lead to violence and the growth of shadowy, underground networks."In the Preface to the report," reads the press release accompanying the report, "[UN Office of Drugs and Crime Executive Director Antonio Maria] Costa explores the debate over repealing drug controls. He acknowledges that controls have generated an illicit black market of macro-economic proportions that uses violence and corruption."Jack Cole, executive director of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) and a retired undercover narcotics detective, objected to the report's classification of current policy as "control.""The world's 'drug czar,' Antonio Maria Costa, would have you believe that the legalization movement is calling for the abolition of drug control," he said. "Quite the contrary, we are demanding that governments replace the failed policy of prohibition with a system that actually regulates and controls drugs, including their purity and prices, as well as who produces them and who they can be sold to. You can't have effective control under prohibition, as we should have learned from our failed experiment with alcohol in the U.S. between 1920 and 1933."Ryan Grim's book, This Is Your Country On Drugs: The Secret History of Getting High in America, is now on sale.Newshawk: josephlacerenzaSource: Huffington Post (NY)Author: Ryan GrimPublished: June 24, 2009Copyright: 2009 HuffingtonPost.com, LLC Contact: scoop huffingtonpost.comURL: http://drugsense.org/url/GsbubOxcWebsite: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/CannabisNews Justice Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/justice.shtml
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Comment #142 posted by afterburner on July 02, 2009 at 19:27:33 PT
Off Topic
The following 3 links seem to fit into this thread regarding natural medicine, pharmaceuticals & animals:The Michael Jackson Diet That Could Have Saved Him from Death by Western Medicine.
(NaturalNews) There's no question that Michael Jackson was killed by western medicine. Autopsies reveal a devastating pattern of drug injections, bone mineral loss (he suffered rib fractures when administered CPR) and hair loss. When he died, his stomach...
http://www.naturalnews.com/026540_health_Michael_Jackson_food.htmlSolutions for Forced Vaccinations and Flu Pandemics.
In response to several readers concern over the issues presented by the article Watch Out for Flying Syringes, GMO Food Vaccines, and Forced Vaccinations, here are some solutions. Most of the solutions suggested are for vaccination...
http://www.naturalnews.com/026538_vaccination_vaccinations_homeopathy.htmlEven in Cows: A Diet Designed by Nature Reduces Health Problems.
An organic dairy farm in Vermont found a way to bring down their vet bills and raise cows with fewer health problems. The answer was simple enough; they started feeding the animals grasses, flax and alfalfa - or essentially what amounts to...
http://www.naturalnews.com/026534_health_cows_nature.html
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #141 posted by FoM on July 02, 2009 at 16:25:33 PT
Off Topic: Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson Probably O.D.'d -- Just Like Thousands of Americans Who Fall Victim to Our Overdose EpidemicBy Jill Harris, AlterNetJune 29, 2009As the world continues to mourn the death of Michael Jackson and the details of his final hours emerge, it appears that it may be another in a long line of celebrity drug overdoses. Jackson is reported to have taken a number of painkillers known as opioids on a regular if not daily basis.URL: http://www.alternet.org/drugreporter/140965/
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Comment #140 posted by greenmed on July 02, 2009 at 12:59:09 PT
bionic man
This might work:http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090627/ap_on_re_us/us_toxic_legacy_of_war
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Comment #139 posted by museman on July 02, 2009 at 12:58:24 PT
tylenol
Is a cash cow for the pharma industry, as well a very stupid and unhealthy way to 'control and regulate' peoples access to natural pain killers such as opiates. The vicodin (hydro cordone) is a perfect example. A few winters back, I had a situation of extreme and debilitating pain from the continuating deterioration of my spine, brought on by work I should not have been doing, during which I visited the emergency room 2 times. I asked my doctor for some opiates without tylenol, as he had explained to me that the real danger in taking opiates cut with tylenol, was the tylenol itself, which causes liver damage in a high percentage of users. (I have to get my liver tested every 6 months, because of my use of vicodin.)
He refused, based on limitations set on his medical skills by the feds concerning their 'regulation and control'...When I asked him why the tylenol was there in the first place. he told me it was a direct result of the WOD and 'control and regulation' of controlled substances, and absolutely nothing to do with health, and or safe use of pain killers.I got no prescription for lower tylenol, so I ate my 750 vics like candy -which actually did nothing for the pain, and I had to find an alternative away from the 'medical community.'Sheer mental will power is the only thing that was available to me, and at one point I began to laugh at the pain. I managed to 'get on top of it' and slowly get to a point where it could be managed with the combination of the crappy vicodin, and a lot of herb.Tylenol is toxic and useless, but the pharma has a lot of money invested in its production, ever since the 70's when they tried to tell us it was a good pain killer, and a safer-than-asperin substitute.And of course, just like about 80% of everything approved by the FDA (really just a subsidized government office with its roots firmly affixed to the pockets of big pharma) tylenol is more poisonous than it is of any health benefit, but like anything else that enters into legislative process -in any way- money, and profits for the high-class members of the status quo is the bottom line, and pure motivation for deceiving and poisoning millions.So, anyone who wants to stand up and cheer about the very same corrupt persons who poison us legally for the sake of their yachts and fancy homes in wherever, putting cannabis under their thumb of 'control and regulation', I say look a little closer before you celebrate.FREE CANNABIS FOR EVERYONE
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Comment #138 posted by bionic man on July 02, 2009 at 12:10:00 PT
#137
the link seems to be broken, but it was on yahoo. sorry for posting a broken link.
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #137 posted by bionic man on July 02, 2009 at 12:02:02 PT
comment 135
This hexavalent chromium is the same chemical that the true story movie Erin Brockovich was about.
Did toxic chemical in Iraq cause GIs' illnesses?
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Comment #136 posted by FoM on July 02, 2009 at 04:41:51 PT
Afterburner
I agree with you. I really do.
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Comment #135 posted by afterburner on July 02, 2009 at 03:21:19 PT
FoM #123
The indiscriminate use of chemicals in war operations continues. Gulf War Syndrome may be associated with mandatory vaccinations routinely given to soldiers and first responders. Vaccine Expert Reveals What You Should Know Before You Roll Up Your Sleeve
By Barbara Minton, Natural Health Editor
July 1 - A study by the Harvard Medical School of Public Health confirmed that public health officials could convince most people in the U.S. to alter their daily lives, follow government mandates and do as they are told...
http://www.naturalnews.com/026526_health_influenza_vaccines.html
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Comment #134 posted by FoM on July 01, 2009 at 19:03:22 PT
bionic man
I understand what you are saying. Since I had a problem with narcotic medicine many years ago they scare me now. I have back pain but in my mind there is nothing I can do about it.
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Comment #133 posted by bionic man on July 01, 2009 at 18:40:11 PT
pain control dilemma
Until I can access a dependable source of natural medicine, I am stuck with products containing tylenol. However, my dr. prescribes a hydrocodone product with the lowest amount of tylenol and the highest amount of hydrocodone. I am very aware of the danger and try to use the least amount needed. I would stop taking them in an instant if I had a reliable source natural medicine. Not only do I hate the side effects mentioned, opiates play havoc with the body's hormone production. Opiates should available without added meds, as they have for centuries, and in other countries. When I first used cannibis for my pain problems, I was able to stop the opiates with NO withdrawal issues. By putting tylenol in pain meds to discourage overusage seems barbaric.
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Comment #132 posted by FoM on July 01, 2009 at 17:22:30 PT
Hope
I don't think they will ban tylenol but lower the dosage recommendation and put serious warnings on the bottles about alcohol and mixing drugs that contain tylenol. The problem with Vicodan is it is a drug that people often take a lot of them after time and that level of tylenol can shut down the liver. A person is looking for the narcotic effect and get the damaging part of the tylenol.I do think there must be a better way. Take the stuff that kills out of pills and help those who need serious pain medicine. Michael Jackson's death is a very good example of addiction in the worst possible way. It is tragic.
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Comment #131 posted by Hope on July 01, 2009 at 17:06:45 PT
FoM
Be very careful. Even with prescriptions. Read labels closely... it's in all sorts of stuff.I found out recently that pepto-bismol has aspirin in it. Of course it doesn't say "Aspirin"... it's salicylic acid... I think.Watch for acetaminophen in stuff... even if you'd think there would be no logical reason for it being an ingredient.
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Comment #130 posted by Hope on July 01, 2009 at 17:02:00 PT
One of the oddest things about all this
is that tylenol is something so many people think is worthlessly weak and useless. Obviously it can be quite useful as a way of adding a deadly 'side effect' to something they didn't feel had enough bad side effects of it's own.I'm so sorry that it did that to you, FoM. I am glad you overcame it and survived it.Also, I am beginning to a worry a bit about the possiblity of not having tylenol for those relatively rare but very important times that I do actually need it. Probably people are already making runs on the extra strength tylenol.*sigh*This could really be a problem for people who are allergic to aspirin and some people can't even take ibuprophen. It's hard on the stomach lining.Cannabis of course, is a pain reliever and anti-inflammatory... but.... the busybodies don't want people having access to that.*sigh* ... again.
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Comment #129 posted by FoM on July 01, 2009 at 15:34:48 PT
Hope
I don't take tylenol products. I was close to liver failure and it wasn't from the codeine in the pill but the tylenol. People that mix alcohol with tylenol risk a rapid decline in their liver function. http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/cirrhosis/#cause
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Comment #128 posted by greenmed on July 01, 2009 at 15:31:07 PT
cannabinoids in poppy?
I cannot find any independent references for the presence of cannabinoids in poppies besideshttp://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Poppy_teawhich presents the same information, abbreviated. Methinks a grain of salt is needed.
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Comment #127 posted by Hope on July 01, 2009 at 15:28:11 PT
In this discussion of acetaminophen
it's occurred to me that many, if not most, maybe even all, of the liver failures we've heard of over the years that were blamed on simply achohol... may not have been simply about alcohol at all. Probably not, in fact.I know the alcohol makes the tylenol more dangerous... but I'd almost bet, if I were a betting person, that tylenol was really the deciding factor in most of those liver failures that we blamed on alcoholism.
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Comment #126 posted by Hope on July 01, 2009 at 15:23:30 PT
Codiene
I know that when my daughter lived in the Netherlands you could buy codiene tablets there otc just like aspirin. She used it for her migraines when she saw one coming and thought it worked great. She was relieved to discover it and was disappointed that it wasn't available to people here.Can't trust Americans with such... you know.Probably the UN and busybodies have taken it off the counters even in Europe by now though.I don't mind people warning me of dangers at all. I do mind being treated like a child, a moron, or criminal and ordered around though.
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Comment #125 posted by Hope on July 01, 2009 at 15:15:51 PT
Greenmed
I thought cannabinoids were only produced by the mammalian body and the cannabis plant. I didn't know it was in other plants, too. Learned something! Very interesting.Thank you.
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Comment #124 posted by Hope on July 01, 2009 at 15:12:49 PT
Apparently it wasn't Kaopectate...
I can't remember the name of it. I know it wasn't paragoric though... for sure. I can see the bottle label in my mind... it listed a certain amount of opium in the ingredients.I remember! It was Parepectolin. Which probably had paragoric in it.Best I can find on searches... they don't make it with opium anymore but apparently they both ...kaopectate and parapectolin used to have opium in them.
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Comment #123 posted by FoM on July 01, 2009 at 15:03:11 PT
Hope
Back in the 70s I remember reading a Reader's Digest article that said people that ran when the planes came and smoked opium were often able to survive the chemical rain that they poured down on them. I was very impressed with how it helped people live but I can't find anything like what I read online now.***Excerpt: The Lao People's Democratic Republic has pursued a rather contradictory policy toward the Hmong since 1975. From 1976 to 1979, the government sent Lao and Vietnamese troops, supported by artillery and Soviet-made MiG-21 airplanes, to attack the Hmong hideout at Phou Bia, dropping napalm, defoliants, and, according to Hmong refugees who managed to survive and escape, biological and chemical poisons on them, in order to crush the remaining pockets of resistance.Survivors report that the poisons came in several colors. The yellow poison fell like rain and made people dizzy and nauseous. The victims vomited and had diarrhea until their bodies became so dehydrated that they died. http://www.hmongnet.org/publications/hmf-intro.html
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Comment #122 posted by greenmed on July 01, 2009 at 14:56:21 PT
Hope and FoM
Hope, yes, cannabinoids in poppy... according to FoM's link in comment 110. It is probably in trace amounts, but cannabis is evidently not the only life-form that produces them!As for opiates in OTC preparations, pharmacies can vend codeine (in small amounts/concentrations) in the form of cough-suppressants, without Rx.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codeine(under the Indications and Availability headings)
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Comment #121 posted by FoM on July 01, 2009 at 14:19:08 PT
Hope
I found it. I don't remember this though.Kaopectate-Suspension and Opium Deodorized Interactionshttp://www.drugs.com/drug-interactions/kaopectate-suspension_d01026_opium-deodorized_d00824.html
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Comment #120 posted by Hope on July 01, 2009 at 14:14:47 PT
Paregoric
was something people used to give fussy babies ... for fussiness and teething.It was still used a lot, as I understand, when we were babies but I don't know of it ever being used in my family. But I have heard older people make insinuating, insulting remarks about people they knew and wanted to be snide at, that they used paregoric to keep their babies and little children quieter and more well behaved. Kind of like the ADD and such medications used today... only it was otc.Of course, the very reason that a lot of people didn't use it, I suspect, was it's own natural side effect... constipation.
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Comment #119 posted by FoM on July 01, 2009 at 13:57:13 PT
Hope
Wasn't it Paregoric? Addiction is a terrible thing. I remember a song that always scared me when I heard it.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ParegoricLynyrd Skynyrd - That Smell (Live '77)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQlCxE4z3u4
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Comment #118 posted by Hope on July 01, 2009 at 13:49:11 PT
FoM, Greenmed
It sounds so awful what you went through, FoM. So awful. So many people seem to think something like that couldn't happen to them, but I'm pretty much opposite to that... if it could go wrong... with me, I think...it probably would.I do remember a common medicine for diahreah we used to use, and even for infants and children, had opium in it. Kaopectate? Something like that. It was the best diahreah medicine and you didn't have to have a prescription, but I do think you had to sign for it. I don't even know if it's used anymore, but it was very helpful medicine.Greenmed... cannabinoids in poppy?
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Comment #117 posted by greenmed on July 01, 2009 at 10:14:59 PT
Poppy Tea
It is interesting to note what "additives" Nature puts in the poppy:"Grinding seeds is unnecessary and counterproductive unless the weak cannabinoids present in the fatty portions of the seed are sought...""The ingestion of the seeds themselves in large quantities will have similar effects as well as effects from cannabinoids present in the fats in the seeds."
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Comment #116 posted by FoM on July 01, 2009 at 10:12:08 PT
Hope
Opiate withdrawal was the worst pain I ever experienced in my life. You almost wish you would just quick die and get it over with.
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Comment #115 posted by FoM on July 01, 2009 at 10:10:00 PT
Hope
Opiates slow down peristolysis. Some disease cause chronic diarrhea and that would be a benefit.
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Comment #114 posted by Hope on July 01, 2009 at 09:47:21 PT
Narcotics
I've never been addicted to them... but I believe people when they say it's rough. If you tell me it hurts getting kicked in the head by a mule... I don't have to try it to see if it hurts me. Your warning, and bruises and dents, are quite enough for me. But these things have there very own unpleasant and even deadly side effects that no one really wants. Why can't they just deal with it from there without all this tinkering with additives?
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Comment #113 posted by Hope on July 01, 2009 at 09:41:47 PT
Actually...
the stuff they are adding side effects to already has it's own unpleasant side effects.Severe, intractable, chronic constipation doesn't sound like a happy or desirable situation to me.
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Comment #112 posted by FoM on July 01, 2009 at 09:40:49 PT
Hope
My opinion is when additives are put in drugs to help prevent abuse it won't stop abuse because a person's tolerance for opiates increases rapidly so it won't be long until people are suffering from niacin overload.
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Comment #111 posted by Hope on July 01, 2009 at 09:36:58 PT
Whew!
Niacin?I know what that can do and how it feels... and looks! There was a time when I took loads of supplements in seperate pills. Zinc can make you feel very ill. Vitamin A can poison you. Too much E for too long can cripple you. Calcium can make you depressed and niacin can make you a new kind of miserable and peculiar looking, to boot.As I recall, niacin supplements are nicotinic acid. I wonder if it has any connection to nicotine?As long as it's not something that can kill, I guess I don't have too much problem with it. Although I still have serious doubts about such methods being used at all. If it really is about safety... without hurting or killing what you are supposedly protecting... I guess it's relatively tolerable.Too much niacin is very unpleasant. I do hope they make sure that it's not capable of causing death and destruction of the body. It does burn and itch and make your skin hot and red.
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Comment #110 posted by FoM on July 01, 2009 at 09:20:43 PT
Poppy Tea
Poppy tea is a narcotic analgesic tea which is brewed from the pods or seeds of the Papaver somniferum plant. It has been consumed for its analgesic, anti-diarrhoeal, and/or psychoactive effects for as long as the poppy has been cultivated down to the present day in many parts of the world.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poppy_tea
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Comment #109 posted by FoM on July 01, 2009 at 09:18:46 PT
Side Effects of Niacin - For The Consumer
NiacinAll medicines may cause side effects, but many people have no, or minor, side effects. Check with your doctor if any of these most COMMON side effects persist or become bothersome when using Niacin:Diarrhea; dry skin; headache; itching; stomach upset; temporary skin redness, tingling or feelings of warmth (flushing)Seek medical attention right away if any of these SEVERE side effects occur when using Niacin:
Severe allergic reactions (rash; hives; itching; difficulty breathing; tightness in the chest; swelling of the mouth, face, lips, or tongue); black, tarry, or bloody stools; changes in vision; cloudy or blurred vision; decrease in urine or dark-colored urine; dizziness; fast or irregular heartbeat; flu-like symptoms (nausea, vomiting, "not well" feeling); irregular heartbeat; loss of appetite; muscle weakness, swelling, tenderness, or pain; numbness or persistent tingling of the skin; swelling of the hands, legs, or feet; vomit that looks like coffee grounds; yellowing of the skin or eyes.http://www.drugs.com/sfx/niacin-side-effects.html
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Comment #108 posted by FoM on July 01, 2009 at 09:13:19 PT
Hope
This seems like it will be the new drug just like the old drug but without tylenol. What about poppy tea? I read it works and it would be pure?http://acurapharm.com/products/acurox-tablets/Excerpt: A potential future alternative is Acurox, a drug co-developed by King and Acura and currently under review by the FDA. Acurox is a single-dose tablet containing the opiate oxycodone - which is sold separately as OxyContin and other brands - plus the drug niacin. It's designed to deter abuse by causing unpleasant effects if it's crushed or taken excessively.http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/djf500/200907011040DOWJONESDJONLINE000479_FORTUNE5.htm
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Comment #107 posted by Hope on July 01, 2009 at 09:09:53 PT
FoM
That's horrible about your friend and employee. Horrible.It's stunning what these anti addiction and prohibitionist jerks get away with. Stunning... and wrong. Next they'll be adding the "side effect" of organ failure to our food... to "Protect" those who might eat too much.
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Comment #106 posted by Hope on July 01, 2009 at 09:04:21 PT
Lol! FoM...
Looks like we're thinking alike today.The ignorance of their choice, poisoning their fellow man on purpose, is so stunning. Somehow, I'll bet there will be some quick and major backtracking. They had to have let that tidbit of information slip out by accident.I sense major lawsuits brewing and it rather looks to me like there really should be criminal charges. It looks like murder or willful injury to me.
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Comment #105 posted by FoM on July 01, 2009 at 08:55:14 PT
A Correction
The employee I had was more like in her early 30s. She weighed about 112 lbs. Within a week or so when we went to the hospital to see her after her liver failed she was nearly 200 lbs. It happened that quickly. She is still alive luckily because of the transplant but I haven't seen her in years and don't know how she is doing now. Tylenol is serious stuff.
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Comment #104 posted by FoM on July 01, 2009 at 08:50:50 PT
Why They Added Tylenol
To prevent abuse of of pain reliever. Smart huh?
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Comment #103 posted by Hope on July 01, 2009 at 08:37:13 PT
Well that's smart...
Adding the liver killer so that people won't take too much of the non liver killer.Makes sense.... NOT!Sounds like the regular War on Drugs. "We think we should kill you rather than see you get addicted or take more of the stuff than we want you to."Seems like in the consideration of "Right and Wrong"... poisoning the guy who takes more than you want him to seems, definitely, wrong.
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Comment #102 posted by greenmed on July 01, 2009 at 08:08:05 PT
OT: Vicodin Ban and Cannabis
I did not understand why acetaminophen is an ingredient at all.Vicodin = Hydrocodone + AcetaminophenPercocet = Oxycodone + AcetaminophenOxyContin = Oxycodone + inert bindershttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrocodone"Hydrocodone is typically found in combination with other drugs such as paracetamol, aspirin, ibuprofen and homatropine methylbromide. The purpose of the non-controlled drugs in combination is often twofold: 1) To provide increased analgesia via drug synergy. 2) To limit the intake of hydrocodone by causing unpleasant and often unsafe side effects at higher-than-prescribed doses. ""Hydrocodone is not available in pure form in the United States due to a separate regulation, and is always sold with an NSAID, acetaminophen, antihistamine, expectorant, or homatropine.""Combining an opioid such as hydrocodone with another analgesic can increase the effectiveness of the drug without increasing opioid-related side effects (e.g., nausea, constipation, sedation). Another argument for combining hydrocodone with acetaminophen is that it limits the potential for abuse. As with other opioid analgesics, with a few exceptions, there is no ceiling dose for hydrocodone in users tolerant to its effects; however the acetaminophen it is often combined with can be fatally hepatotoxic in large quantities."
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Comment #101 posted by FoM on July 01, 2009 at 06:36:29 PT
OT: Vicodin Ban and Cannabis
I am not unhappy about a ban on Vicodin because I have two friends who needed liver transplants and one was because of the tylenol in her pain meds. She was in her mid 20s, she was one of my very good employees, when her liver failed. Since I am a person who kicked narcotics I know what is ahead for many people and it won't be nice. We better know that a ban won't help those who are strung out. Will we find a way to help people off of narcotics or cut them loose? There is no simple solution but we must figure this out or we will have a heroin epidemic in my opinion.Cannabis helps a person who is coming off of narcotics. It helps a person to sleep since you can't sleep when you quit narcotics at first. It helps stop nightmares and generally comforts. I honestly don't believe there is any other substance that can help at this point.
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Comment #100 posted by FoM on June 30, 2009 at 19:39:28 PT
Hope
Cannabis can also be an anti-depressant and a mood elevator. It can help people with ADD and pain in general. They don't like it because it would take the place of many prescription drugs.
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Comment #99 posted by Hope on June 30, 2009 at 19:34:04 PT
"I think"
Actually, it's not just me that thinks that when it's been brougt up. I've had more than one person that knew me and cared about me say that they could see that it had a good and beneficial effect on me. They've commented that it seems to be particurly agreeable to my personality and how I feel and act.Not always such a glum bum... is what I take that to mean.:0)Not being such a "Glum bum" as much as is apparently usual to me, is not a bad thing at all.
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Comment #98 posted by FoM on June 30, 2009 at 19:31:20 PT
Hope
I think Cannabis does help stop nightmares.
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Comment #97 posted by Hope on June 30, 2009 at 19:27:54 PT
Migraines and cannabis
Maybe it will be possible someday for me to have dependable and safe access to a type of cannabis that could keep me from having them at all. That would be very nice.I do know that times in my life that I've used cannabis fairly regularly have been remarkably healthy times, physically and emotionally, I think. I also noticed that it stopped the night terrors I've been afflicted with most of my life. I noticed that big time way back in the day.
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Comment #96 posted by FoM on June 30, 2009 at 19:17:20 PT
This Doesn't Surprise Me
Percocet, Vicodin Ban Recommended Over Liver Harmhttp://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=ax2SviPKBoIE
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Comment #95 posted by greenmed on June 30, 2009 at 19:06:23 PT
Hydergine - correction
After a little googling, I found that Hydergine is not effective at treating migraine (it is a nootropic), but Methysergide and Ergotamine are. Both have been available for a long while, so they are likely available as generics.
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Comment #94 posted by greenmed on June 30, 2009 at 18:14:34 PT
Hope
Due to DEA scrutiny, many physicians (GPs) are unlikely to treat pain with anything much stronger than a recommendation for Ibuprofen or Naproxen (the ingredient in Aleve), and those just don't cut it for chronic pain, simply put. Cannabis helps with (peripheral) neuropathic pain... I've practically abandoned OTC and Rx meds for pain, except on occasion for headache or minor trauma, and an 81 mg aspirin daily for cardioprotection. Thankfully, yes, there is a non-toxic alternative for us for whom it works - cannabis.BTW, I experienced migraines several times per month in my youth until I was 16 when they abruptly disappeared. I didn't make the connection until years later, but cannabis no doubt had a hand in delivering me from them. I empathize with you. It is terrible painThere are some ergot-derived preparations, such as Hydergine (ergoloid mesylate) I think it's called, that can be effective treatment, but I don't know if they are FDA-approved, although they're widely prescribed in Europe. The mechanism is something to do with alteration of cerebral blood-flow patterns, which is consistent also with the action of cannabinoids.In the same way that hemp fiber is bound-up with high-THC cannabis in the minds of many, ergot compounds may similarly be associated with LSD which might explain their greater popularity overseas for many indications.
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Comment #93 posted by Hope on June 30, 2009 at 17:07:18 PT
Thankfully, Greenmed
I haven't had to deal with chronic pain like so many have except for when I was down in my back for about three years once. That was when I was a bit worried about it because I was taking it far more often than I usually would.People with chronic pain are literally in a world of hurt. I so sympathize with them and think medicine and society in general should help and not hinder them in their search for relief.To condemn them to no relief is to be part of torturing them, it seems to me. In a very real sense of the word.
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Comment #92 posted by Hope on June 30, 2009 at 17:00:38 PT
Acetaminophen is never my first choice
for pain relief. For one thing it it's not an inflammatory as well as being hard on the liver. Aspirin would be my first and only choice, if I could still take it... but I can't. But when I have no alternative, I take acetaminophen and when I can, if I am struck with an aura I immediately take a dose of both it and ibuprofen. It's always worked so far. But it seldom happens over two or three times per month... if I'm lucky.Whatever is in Aleve doesn't help me that I can tell at all. There are prescription drugs that can be helpful, but as long as the otc stuff works for me and I'm careful with it... I'm good to go with them and don't have the added hassle of the prescription route.
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Comment #91 posted by greenmed on June 30, 2009 at 13:53:35 PT
Hope
I am one of those for whom Tylenol - acetaminophen - offers no pain relief, so I've not taken any for decades (at least not that I've been aware of, considering it's in many OTC products).http://www.fda.gov/AdvisoryCommittees/Calendar/ucm143083.htmThis release seems apropos to your words - the FDA is cloistering as we speak to discuss the potential of acetaminophen to damage the liver. Maximum recommended daily dose is currently 4000 mg.
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Comment #90 posted by Hope on June 30, 2009 at 10:44:34 PT
Beer and acetaminophen
Just the least bit of alcohol can exacerbate the damage of acetaminophen and acetaminophen type drugs. I was lucky enough to see a program years ago about a woman that was dying of liver failure because she took a dose of otc tylenol for chronic pain with a drink or two in the evenings, regularly, because she was unaware of the danger.Her situation made a powerful and lasting statement to me. She turned her loss into a warning that I'm sure has saved many people from the same destruction. It's just that apparently, a lot of people missed it.I actually, though, over a decade ago, had a good doctor tell me I worried about acetaminophen too much... because he had elderly patients that had been taking acetaminophen every day for years just to be able to get out of bed in the mornings and their livers weren't failing. He was trying to reassure me. Maybe too much.Much as I respected him... I still kept the caution I felt close to my heart and listened to it. I'd already become allergic to aspirin and was watching all the pain stuff carefully.In an odd way, I'm actually thankful in a way, for that situation of becoming allergic to aspirin after years and years of taking it without trouble. It made me more careful.I guess it's kind of like the MSG problem. They say that people that actually have noticable reactions to it are actually the lucky ones, in that the people who don't have reactions to it are still being hurt by it, even if they don't get noticabley sick from it when they consume it.It's probably like that with acetamenophen. If you really need it... then the smaller, recoverable from damage, responsible dose risk is relatively acceptable. But it's the long term, regular use, and large or exacerbated doses that eventually overcome the liver's ability to heal from it.People need to know these things. Forget the fried eggs and cannabis lies. Make the information about acetaminophen fried livers available to everyone and anyone. That would be responsible use of tax money used for warnings of danger. Unless it's too late to ever believe anything government says because of the scaremongering and idiocy of past campaigns of warnings, especially about cannabis.Our livers work hard to keep us well and functioning. We need to take care of them. I think cannabis or cannabis based pain relievers are liver friendly, if I remember correctly. Somebody that has some influence in these matters needs to give all that some thought. Some serious and sensible thought.
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Comment #89 posted by FoM on June 30, 2009 at 10:15:52 PT
Hope
Being aware is important. Our livers can regenerate but sometimes the damage goes too far and a person needs a liver transplant. Our friend who had a liver transplant has told us how difficult the journey was during the time from when he went into almost complete liver failure to how someone kind allowed himself to wait on a liver because our friend couldn't wait. His liver failure was caused by the drugs they gave him to treat HepC. No one told him he shouldn't drink beer at the same time and the liver failed.
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Comment #88 posted by Hope on June 30, 2009 at 10:02:18 PT
Migraines
My Advil and Tylenol thing only works if I take it at the first sign of an aura. Nothing works... I don't think morphine or heroin would... if I waited till the pain hits. If I wait til the pain hits... I'm down for the count... hours or days... no matter what I take or do.I remember that study now... that announcement. It was studing hydrocodone type stuff, I think. They thought the liver damage and danger was going to be from the codiene. It wasn't. It was from the acetaminophen.
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Comment #87 posted by Hope on June 30, 2009 at 09:57:34 PT
acetaminophen
Dang right. That's a dangerous drug. It's helpful, I use it in the over the counter form when I have migraines. I add it to Advil. It's always worked for me and I don't have to take major prescription migraine medicine because that works for me. But... I've known for a long time how dangerous it is and have been mucho careful with it. I don't think even doctors are careful enough with it.When they stopped selling Drixoral, the antihistamine that kept my allergies from ruining my life for more than thirty years, I went back to the specialist for something else. This was just weeks after the major announcement of the liver danger in acetaminophen being the surprisingly dangerous part of vicodin or hydrocodone and other drugs. He gave me a bunch of samples to try. I got them out to the car and looked at them. I was supposed to take a twice daily dose, every day... and I looked at the box and I was shocked to see that acetaminophen was one of the ingredients. No way in hell did I need to take unnecessary acetaminophen on a daily basis combined with something I had to take. I was so disappointed in what I took to be his carelessness or ignorance. I never went back to him and I trashed those pills. I still can't believe he did that or didn't know the danger. He's a doctor. I knew the danger more than he did? That didn't seem right.Oddly, most people I know think acetaminophen, Tylenol... is worthless for their pain problems. They think it's weak or something and thinking it's weak, they don't fully grasp the danger of it, I guess. Thankfully, most people that think it's weak, just don't take it.... that they know of.When I hear or read these warnings and announcements about stuff like Tylenol... I pay attention. Probably goes back to the childhood thing of listening for news announcements that would precede parental lectures.Ultimately, as adults, we need to be informed and not to depend on government, or even doctors or pharmacists, to watch after our every step and hold our hands and make our decisions on every matter. We've got to be able to look after ourselves as much as possible. That means paying attention to what's going on as much as we can.This all also points out the real danger of harping on about the dangers in cannabis that simply do not exist or are extremely unlikely. It makes people doubt all the other warnings... many of which might be true... but not believed because of the lies and exaggerations and misinformation about cannabis.
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Comment #86 posted by FoM on June 30, 2009 at 08:39:56 PT
Hope
At this point in drug policy reform maybe it's time to be honest. I talked to someone not too long ago about Vicodin. I told this person after I looked at one of the pills online what it was made of. It had 5 mg of hydrocodone and 500 mg of acetaminophen. I said acetaminophen can shut down a person's liver. I said I honestly believe the risk in that drug is the acetaminophen. The person got it. That is not judgemental but factual. We need to speak the truth when we know it and not be afraid. We don't have anymore time to play games.
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Comment #85 posted by Hope on June 30, 2009 at 08:25:55 PT
I have never understood people who will take
a pill from anywhere, any pill for the supposed fun of it.It's so stupid and it's so dangerous.It's the plan of an idiot... no doubt. No one should purposely help an idiot be an idiot... for profit or not. The world is heavily peppered with people who live not just recklessly... but suicidally. It especially worries me that so many young people will do it.If a person is in pain and cannot get safe pain relief through clear and legal sources... I can comprehend their behavior. I can't understand taking unknown and homemade chemicals that you know can make you sick or kill you. Except that we do do that, don't we? When the doctor or pharmacist says "Take this"... we usually do and sometimes it's a huge mistake.We grew up with severe lectures about baby aspirin, in particular, as I recall. I dreaded some kid doing stupid things and it being on the news. Being the oldest of four children, I got double lectures... for myself and for my brothers and sister, becaise, as the oldest, I was supposed to keep them from doing stupid things as well as myself.Taking pills or getting themselves smothered in an old refrigerator, hit by a car, or hung on a swing set were usually the sort of thing... oh and kidnapping, too... that got me called in for a lecture on the spot. I felt really bad for the kids that died, but I felt bad for myself because I knew as soon as something like that was in the news I was going to get a stern and lengthy lecture. It kind of seemed like to me, they were blaming me somehow or that they thougt I was not paying attention to them and I was. They weren't mean about it. I can still see the concern in their eyes. My daddy's in particular. Mom, I think was usually busy with supper... evening news time... so she wasn't always looking me in the eye during the deeply, deeply concerned lectures and warnings. I know now that they loved me very much and they did it right. They did it right... because it sure worked for us. We grew up being perhaps too safety concious, but we grew up. Maybe with the invention of safety caps, people don't lecture their children as much as they used to. Whatever my parents did, it certainly worked for me. I don't know how to keep other people, especially grown people from doing things like that for sure. There probably isn't a way.I don't know what the answer is. I know that I was taught to look both ways before crossing the street... and I did usually, fanatically, several times both ways... but one morning on the way to school, I stepped out in front of a car and got hit. My books flew and I was on the ground in front of the car. I guess they weren't looking either. Anyway, it was slow moving and thankfully, I wasn't seriously hurt and I grabbed my stuff and got out of there before the people could even get out of the car. What was happening that day... I can't explain. People do stupid things and they make mistakes. I don't know what to do about things like that except warn and warn and educate and educate. I guess the arresting and blaming people is part of the big warning efforts. It's hard to know what to do. We can't guard everyone all the time and we can't all stay home behind locked doors.It is a serious part and problem of living and keeping living and keeping others living. I don't know the answer, but I do know when they've taken it too far... and in the wrong direction... as with cannabis.In the case of cannabis, my activism is about protecting people from the so called "Protectors". About the other stuff... I don't know. Did I tell you that I saw on the Animal channel that there are more than thirty thousand tigers in Texas alone? That's insane. I don't know what to do about people doing things like that and the amazing list of other stupid things people do. Well...with the lions and tigers and bears, and chimps... Lord knows I despise chimps... I have a clue. They should definitely be confisccated by people who are capable of handling them. Put them in zoos or euthanize them. Don't hurt me Peta!I just don't know what to do about dangerous chemicals. The world is so dangerous. Like that cliff near where you live. They can put up signs and fences and warnings... but people still go over it. I can figure out that warning and threatening and punishing about too many things, especially when the warning is more dangerous than the threat, about things that aren't that dangerous can detract from the real warnings. I don't know. I just know that you shouldn't beat the hell out of people to keep them "safe".Dang I feel opiniated, overly authoritative, dictatorial, and not too sharp.:0(I only KNOW about cannabis prohibition... and that it's causing way more harm than cannabis does.
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Comment #84 posted by FoM on June 30, 2009 at 05:00:45 PT
Hope
I recently have heard of people who go to a doctor or more then one doctor to get narcotics to take them to a big city and sell them to make a good deal of money. They don't take them, don't like them but get them to sell. That bothers me.
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Comment #83 posted by Hope on June 29, 2009 at 23:12:30 PT
That article about the wallabies
is funny. It'll make you smile. Unless you have a severe desire to do intervention for wallabies.
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Comment #82 posted by Hope on June 29, 2009 at 23:06:28 PT
Wow...
It sounds like Mr. Young delivered quite a concert at Glastonbury. Amazing review of the evening.I'm glad it's just wallabies nibbling the product on the poppy farm. Circle stomping kangaroos would be rather alarming.
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Comment #81 posted by Hope on June 29, 2009 at 23:00:15 PT
Afterburner
Hope you had a good day.
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Comment #80 posted by afterburner on June 29, 2009 at 22:25:21 PT
FoM #78, Hope #63 & #64 - More about Wallabies
'High' wallabies accused of making crop circles after eating poppies in Tasmania. L.A. Unleashed. Los Angeles Times
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/unleashed/2009/06/high-wallabies-accused-of-making-crop-circles-after-eating-poppies-in-tasmania.html
Excerpt: {
The magnificently named Lyndley Chopper, a 30-year poppy-growing veteran and recent retiree, told Australia's ABC News that he'd witnessed odd behavior from area wallabies who'd been in his fields. "They would just come and eat some poppies and they would go away. They'd come back again and they would do their circle work in the paddock," Chopping said. But the former poppy grower didn't seem concerned about the idea of chemical dependence on the part of the wallabies. "They seem to know when they've had enough," he recalled of his encounters with the small kangaroo relatives. "They'll still be around and they would leave them alone. It's hard to work out. Didn't seem to be any real pattern to their behavior."
more...
}"They seem to know when they've had enough," Why cannot the DEA allow humans the same consideration as the wallabies? Big Pharma created the problem with all their extraction and concentration of "active ingredients" and their synthetics-are-better-than-organics mantra. The FDA is the enabler of Big Pharma, and the DEA is the muscle.Then, there is Neil, the real deal:Young Makes Up for '97 No-Show With Blistering Glastonbury Set.
http://www.spinner.ca/2009/06/27/young-makes-up-for-97-no-show-with-blistering-glastonbury-set/?icid=main|canada|dl6|link4|http%3A%2F%2Fwww.spinner.ca%2F2009%2F06%2F27%2Fyoung-makes-up-for-97-no-show-with-blistering-glastonbury-set%2F
http://tinyurl.com/m26b85
{
Twelve years it took -- in 1997, Neil Young was supposed to headline the Pyramid Stage; an appearance curtailed by a rather messy accident whilst making a ham sandwich. More than a decade later, Glastonbury finally got its date with Canada's Godfather of grunge on Friday night.
more...
}
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Comment #79 posted by Hope on June 29, 2009 at 21:32:26 PT
The best protection is education
and instilling or developing a sense of caution... especially when there is a known possibility of danger.I'm sure that people that prescribed or supplied them with the drugs they used did not intend to do them harm. I'm sure they meant to help. My doctor did not mean to hurt me when she prescribed me medication that hurt me. She wasn't incompetent in doing that either. I had a bad, unexpected reaction.I can only wonder at why they weren't aware of the dangers. Except that as I understand it, certain potentially deadly drugs and combinations of them can be taken for a long time by some people then suddenly one day, they have the allergic reaction or the deadly reaction they hadn't had before. I'm not into blaming the "Pusher" or the "Enabler"... it's life. Some things are dangerous. Sometimes a thing that is not dangerous to one person is deadly to another. I've seen that in my experience with the antibiotic that I reacted so badly to. For some people it was a life and health saving medicine... it was pure poison to me. I can't even blame the big pharmaceuticals when they warn of the danger. I just can't blame them for these things. It's sad. But it's part of life and part of choices. They are accidents. I don't know if they could have been prevented. I'm not cool about punishing people for accidents and things that were not purposeful misdeeds. I try not to blame God for poisonous snakes and spiders... although I can't say I'm happy about them existing at all.
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Comment #78 posted by FoM on June 29, 2009 at 19:08:00 PT
Hope
I don't believe that people should go to jail for consuming any substance. I look at people like Michael Jackson and Anna Nicole Smith and think who were the enablers? How did they get so many drugs from different doctors? Deepak Chopra was a friend of Michael Jacksons and he is really upset about Michael's death. I get stuck in this area and can't find an answer to how we should deal with this major problem. The drugs that killed them are legal. http://www.chopra.com/
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Comment #77 posted by Hope on June 29, 2009 at 18:24:51 PT
Your philosophy.
It's a good attitude.As we know, there are many out there who refuse to grow and understand anything more than they did last year or a decade or so ago. They call people who grow in their understanding and knowledge "Wishy-washy" or "Flip floppers".Sadly, they don't have a clue other than how to pop off with name calling if they are faced with a real question or disagreement. People like that can keep their ways if they want... even after new consideration... but they are doing themselves and everyone else a disfavor by not giving their ideas reconsideration every once in a while.Do I ever ask myself if I'm wrong about the War on Cannabis or the War on Drugs? You bet I do. I always have to be honest with myself. I questioned my reasoning and my conclusions over and over again. That's how I came to the conclusion that something has to be said. Something has to be done. I check it again every now and then. Doubt creeps in. Maybe I'm wrong. I consider it carefully and am even more sure than ever that it's wrong to hunt, persecute, and kill, and hurt people because they use an herb or a drug. It's immoral ... very immoral... to hurt and punish people for consuming, using, having, growing, or sharing cannabis. It's wrong and it seems anyone has to be very disturbed to think they have any right to harm another... or "save" them by harming them... over cannabis use or any other consumable contraband for that matter... but especially... it's hideously wrong to hurt people over the cannabis plant in any of its forms.... in any way, whatsoever.
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Comment #76 posted by FoM on June 29, 2009 at 13:48:30 PT
Hope
I look at life this way. I am not who I was and I won't be the person I am right now in the future. Change is part of life. We shouldn't be afraid to grow.
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Comment #75 posted by Hope on June 29, 2009 at 13:36:51 PT
One of the good things about cannabis
that I just remembered, one of it's anti depressive qualities, is that it can help you remember fun sometimes... even when you thought or felt like you might never know or remember it again. I've had that happen to me before.
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Comment #74 posted by Hope on June 29, 2009 at 13:33:25 PT
Fun is fun...
:0)I like it.
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Comment #73 posted by Hope on June 29, 2009 at 13:32:08 PT
Progress and growing
"Constant development is the law of life, and a man who always tries to maintain his dogmas in order to appear consistent drives himself into a false position.""For me every ruler is alien that defies public opinion.""Healthy discontent is the prelude to progress.""Honest disagreement is often a good sign of progress.""I am prepared to die, but there is no cause for which I am prepared to kill.""I believe in equality for everyone, except reporters and photographers.":0)http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/m/mohandas_gandhi.htmlMohandas (Mahatma) GandhiYes... I know. Ghandi? Gandi? Gandhi? Mahatma? Mohandas?You know who he is and who he was and what he was. A wise and gentle man and an inspiration to many.
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Comment #72 posted by FoM on June 29, 2009 at 13:18:34 PT
Hope
Good quotes.I'm glad you thought it was fun. Fun really is fun! LOL!
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Comment #71 posted by Hope on June 29, 2009 at 13:17:59 PT
Some Ghandi quotes you might have missed...
"Among the many misdeeds of the British rule in India, history will look upon the act depriving a whole nation of arms as the blackest.""But for my faith in God, I should have been a raving maniac.""God sometimes does try to the uttermost those whom he wishes to bless."
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Comment #70 posted by Hope on June 29, 2009 at 13:08:43 PT
Checking out some Ghandi quotes...
So many applicable to fighting injustice."A small body of determined spirits fired by an unquenchable faith in their mission can alter the course of history."I remember a great anthropoligist, a lady, who's name escapes me at the moment, that said something very similar. Ghandi..."An unjust law is itself a species of violence. Arrest for its breach is more so."" Anger is the enemy of non-violence and pride is a monster that swallows it up."
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Comment #69 posted by Hope on June 29, 2009 at 12:58:36 PT
Handy indeed.
This is the first time the power has gone out since I got it... and I was amazed to see this screen still lit up when we lost power. One of the grandsons was on the other computer as well and of course, it went down. Then I remembered the battery backup. I still turned it off for a while at that time because the storm was so bad and I didn't know if it would attract lightening or not. But after the storm passed and the power still wasn't on, I remembered that I had probably and hour or so of power to check the Internet. It was handy indeed. Fun even!
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Comment #68 posted by FoM on June 29, 2009 at 12:19:31 PT
Hope
That's great. I bet having a laptop and aircard is really handy in times when the power goes out.
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Comment #67 posted by Hope on June 29, 2009 at 12:03:58 PT
It just came on!
Hope it stays on!
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Comment #66 posted by Hope on June 29, 2009 at 12:03:01 PT
Hot?
Yes indeed. Everyone but me is outside. It's quiet right now. No rain and lightning. And things are a bit cooler because of the rain and cloud cover. It's quite tolerable if you aren't doing something physical. The battery won't last long on this computer. But it's amazing to have it. I probably ought to be emailing the power company with this power... but I have to check the news.
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Comment #65 posted by FoM on June 29, 2009 at 11:36:15 PT
Hope
You lost power? That's not good. I hope you get it back on soon because it is so hot right now down your way.
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Comment #64 posted by Hope on June 29, 2009 at 11:30:26 PT
Interesting
http://bit.ly/MeyQlFDA weighs options to reduce painkiller overdoses
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Comment #63 posted by Hope on June 29, 2009 at 11:26:18 PT
Storms here and now no power...
I've got a little bit of power in the laptop... if I hurry.Wallabies making crop circles. That's funny. Attitudes and behavior. Belligerence isn't good communication. Belligerent people send you a message about themselves... not the subject of their belligerence. You can't have a discussion with a person bent on being obnoxious and forcing you to accept their point of view. You might have to accept it at some point because of danger... but it's not the same as working something out.We've suffered the brunt of the prohibitionists belligerence for a long time. Wouldn't it be something if we could be part of ushering in a new age of reason and civility? That would be wonderful. Get us out of the dark ages of the rule of the belligerent, violent dictators.
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Comment #62 posted by FoM on June 29, 2009 at 07:42:51 PT
Afterburner
Thank you! Have a great day! I'm high pressure washing our front porch to re-paint it and it is a beautiful day to finally get this done!
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Comment #61 posted by afterburner on June 29, 2009 at 07:39:26 PT
FoM
I'll add your health to my prayers. Gotta go. Work to do. Bills to pay. Have a great day!
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Comment #60 posted by afterburner on June 29, 2009 at 07:36:03 PT
FoM #45 & Hope #46
This crop talk reminded me of a news story I saw recently:BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | 'Stoned wallabies make crop circles'.
25 Jun 2009 ... Australian wallabies are eating opium poppies and creating crop circles as they hop around "as high as a kite", a government official has ...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8118257.stm
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Comment #59 posted by FoM on June 29, 2009 at 07:24:20 PT
Afterburner
I agree. Life is hard and it isn't fair but how do we handle it all? President Obama looks at problems without being hateful. He won by a large majority of hopeful and kind voters. Why would he listen to people who talk down to him rather then approach him with hope rather the anger? Anger turns me off and always has. Anger can rally angry people but that isn't my way.Sorry I'm late today but I had to go to the hospital for blood tests and I just got back a little while ago. I'll look for articles now and catch up if I missed any.
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Comment #58 posted by afterburner on June 29, 2009 at 07:07:25 PT
Hope & FoM
I would think that Obama would rather listen to our playful cannabis kittens than the angry attack dogs of the Republicans.
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Comment #57 posted by BGreen on June 28, 2009 at 23:12:07 PT
I agree, kenincali, sort of
I agree that using pesticides and other chemicals on anything we consume, even those that are widely accepted as "safe," is worrisome. What a wonderfully normal thing to have to deal with after legalization.I purchase and grow my food organically so cannabis shouldn't be any different.As far as supporting terrorism, there are few countries out there who have perpetrated a greater terrorism than that of the United States government against the cannabis plant and those who choose to consume this miraculous plant.The Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #56 posted by kenincali on June 27, 2009 at 15:18:14 PT:
Imported product comment of Bgreen.
Bgreen,I believe you have a good idea here; my only concern is the use of pesticides or other chemicals that might be used during the growing process. I prefer my stuff to be chemical free if possible. I don't trust stuff I get from the dispensaries either due to not knowing what went in to the plants during growth. If there were some form of regulation and inspection to assure the stuff we were getting from these countries was free of chemicals, I would be all for it. The other concern is that the stuff coming from these countries did not fund any kind of terrorism.QUOTE:
An author was on with Jon Stewart talking about how Opium provides more money for the terrorists than anything else. The farmers grow poppies to make money and need alternative crops, and therein lies my idea of a perfect solution to all of our problems.The poppy farmers could switch to cannabis, a crop that has been grown in Afghanistan for thousands of years. In fact one genus, Cannabis Afghanica, is thought to have actually originated from there.This cannabis is of the highest quality and could fulfill the legal American market for Cannabis Indica. If we allowed our Cannabis Sativa to be grown in the equatorial countries, our supply of different strains and genera for a legal American market for cannabis would be complete, except for the Connoisseur market for American cannabis, which could then function as a niche market.The black market would be eliminated, farmers would have an alternate yet still profitable replacement crop for opium poppies and billions would be saved in our misguided war against this beautiful plant.The Reverend Bud Green
QUOTE:
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Comment #55 posted by FoM on June 27, 2009 at 14:12:45 PT
BGreen
I think it would be a good thing. Allowing people to grow their own in the USA would still be cheaper but their Hash back in the 70s was really good.
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Comment #54 posted by BGreen on June 27, 2009 at 14:07:33 PT
Time for an on-topic repost
I posted this 11-days-ago but it has a place in this discussion regarding posts #40 and 42.*********************************************************An author was on with Jon Stewart talking about how Opium provides more money for the terrorists than anything else. The farmers grow poppies to make money and need alternative crops, and therein lies my idea of a perfect solution to all of our problems.The poppy farmers could switch to cannabis, a crop that has been grown in Afghanistan for thousands of years. In fact one genus, Cannabis Afghanica, is thought to have actually originated from there.This cannabis is of the highest quality and could fulfill the legal American market for Cannabis Indica. If we allowed our Cannabis Sativa to be grown in the equatorial countries, our supply of different strains and genera for a legal American market for cannabis would be complete, except for the Connoisseur market for American cannabis, which could then function as a niche market.The black market would be eliminated, farmers would have an alternate yet still profitable replacement crop for opium poppies and billions would be saved in our misguided war against this beautiful plant.The Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #53 posted by FoM on June 27, 2009 at 13:54:21 PT
Hope
I am not good at names of different people in groups but I do like their music. A bet your son was thrilled to meet him. It doesn't say what cancer he had that took his life. I like music that is Country Rock. It blends the two very well. I have been listening to a channel on XM radio on DirecTV and it's called The Bridge. It has a good selection most times of music I like.http://www.myspace.com/georgemccorklePS: When I was 10 I got a pogo stick for Christmas and loved it. I left it on the garage floor and my father didn't see it and ran over it and bent it. I was so upset but so was he. He said maybe you'll learn to put your toys away and I'd have to use it bent in the middle. I got good at jumping on a bent pogo stick. LOL!
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Comment #52 posted by Hope on June 27, 2009 at 13:25:14 PT
Pogo sticks!?
Last time I tried pogo sticking... I wasn't very accurate in my jumps. I would probably have to try the bat route.Great song. Great band. My son knew George McCorkle of the MTB and thought he was a wonderful man. I might have eventually got to meet him, but alas, he's gone on to his reward, too.
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Comment #51 posted by FoM on June 27, 2009 at 10:42:41 PT
Hope
You mean they didn't think we would use pogo sticks to jump over the fence? LOL! As far as turning into a bat they must be watching way too many vampire movies.I wish they would listen to us. We love nature, puppy dogs and kittens. We enjoy songs like this one and think how nice it might be to add this decor in our home windows. We aren't bizarre or threatening just marching to the beat of a totally different drum.http://www.pogostickusa.com/http://www.hipstuffnow.com/home-decor/marijuana-leaf-decor/pot-leaf-window-film-clear.htmlHeard It In a Love Song: Marshall Tucker Bandhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLava2fGXPw
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Comment #50 posted by Hope on June 27, 2009 at 10:32:04 PT
Chain link fences... even electrified
wouldn't stop "Dope fiends" in the mind of prohibitionists. You have to remember that the congressional record has prohibitionist testimony that consuming hemp can turn you into a bat and you can fly around the room... and certainly over fences!
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Comment #49 posted by Hope on June 27, 2009 at 10:26:25 PT
Speaking of animals...
I've raised enough birds and animals that I know quality nutrition can have a beautiful effect on them, just as it can on us. I often think that healthy, nutritious, easy to grow, soil enriching hemp would be so useful as feed and bedding. So useful. Less fertilizers and insecticides and weed killer involved in growing hemp would lead to cleaner water and air as well.Happier healthier birds and animals... including the ones we eat. Less hormones and better, healthier feedstock would be such a huge benefit to mankind and his future. We may very be destroying the health of our future generations... if we don't destroy them completely... with the chemicals we feed to our animals and spray and fertilize our food with.I'm sick of the involvement of big pharmaceuticals in feeding and dosing animals that we get milk and meat from. We all probably are, sick of it, I mean, even more than we realize because of it. Shutting down the wild eyed prohibitionists and ramping up the production and use of hemp could have a magnificent effect on the quality of life for future generations. Magnificent!
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Comment #48 posted by Hope on June 27, 2009 at 10:10:06 PT
Lol!
Not me. But I guarantee, you, me, all of us, are "scaring" someone with our "radical" agricultural ideas.How dare we even think that Citizens of the United States should be allowed to grow poppies, coca, or cannabis?Oh my... a mouse or a moose might eat some... then what would we have... a radical mouse and moose problem? Then Sara would have moose evading her hunting efforts more easily? Next thing you know... we'll have PETA on our case!
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Comment #47 posted by FoM on June 27, 2009 at 09:54:45 PT
Boo! Did I Scare You? LOL!
I'm just kidding but honestly we are a spooky nation. Technology is cheap now. Put up a big chain link fence like you see when you are near Roswell, New Mexico with barb wire on the top and a big warning sign that says do not trespass Goverment Property or you could be shot. When we walked up to the fence and read a sign like that we didn't considered trying to go beyond that point because it could be a point of no return. That will stop 99 percent of possible trespassers.
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Comment #46 posted by Hope on June 27, 2009 at 09:43:20 PT
You're so right, FoM.
But you know, Americans can't be trusted with crops like that.It's sickening. It's so discouraging that we, as a nation, are treated like misbehaving children by our own government. Sickening. They're wrong. If we can be trusted with nuclear power plants and cars and trucks and guns... ah... but wait... could it be... mentally and intellectually challenged prohibitionists are more afraid of the poppy plant and the cannabis plant than they are of a nuclear power plant? Why yes... I believe they are and they have the money and influence to make their fears important. Arrogant busybodies without much brain and too much influence and huge control issues. Aaargh.
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Comment #45 posted by FoM on June 27, 2009 at 09:19:19 PT
USA Farmers
It's really a shame that some of our rich farmland can't grow our own poppies for our own pain medicine.
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Comment #44 posted by Hope on June 27, 2009 at 08:51:00 PT
Unless they've changed it
there's also a major legal growing of poppies in Australia, of all places, for medical opium.
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Comment #43 posted by FoM on June 27, 2009 at 08:40:37 PT
Hope
I'm not sure but I think we already have a contract with India for Opium for pain medicine in the USA. If it's another country I hope someone corrects me since I read that a long time ago.
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Comment #42 posted by Hope on June 27, 2009 at 08:36:39 PT
Comment 40
Excellent idea for crop substitution! We know they can grow that there.
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Comment #41 posted by Hope on June 27, 2009 at 08:35:20 PT
I think you're right, FoM.
Now if they would stop spraying South America with poisons as soon as possible. Buying those crops and helping people in countries that don't have enough strong pain medicine would be good. But of course they won't do that, I think.
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Comment #40 posted by FoM on June 27, 2009 at 08:33:41 PT
Let Them Grow Cannabis
Back in the 70s the best Hash came from that part of the world.
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Comment #39 posted by Hope on June 27, 2009 at 08:30:18 PT
US announces shift in Afghanistan drug policy
http://bit.ly/wleq2excerpt:TRIESTE, Italy – The United States has announced a new drug policy for opium-rich Afghanistan, saying it was phasing out funding for eradication programs while significantly increasing its funding for alternate crop and drug interdiction efforts.The U.S. envoy for Afghanistan, Richard Holbrooke, told The Associated Press on Saturday that eradication programs weren't working and were only driving farmers into the hands of the Taliban."Eradication is a waste of money," Holbrooke said on the sidelines of a Group of Eight foreign ministers' meeting on Afghanistan, during which he briefed regional representatives on the new policy
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Comment #38 posted by FoM on June 27, 2009 at 04:21:17 PT
Hope
Change is happening and it is happening very quietly. I don't think being mean and yelling at the President will change anything. It could boomerang and set us back many years if our elected officials think we are all a bunch of haters. What we say is important but how we say it is even more important.
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Comment #37 posted by Hope on June 26, 2009 at 21:28:36 PT
Another excerpt ...
"Delahunt is a former prosecutor from Massachusetts. Asked how his experience as a prosecutor shapes his thinking on drug legalization, he turned the question around."I mean, how long have we been waging the war on drugs?" he said.Forty years?"Is it working?" he asked."
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Comment #36 posted by Hope on June 26, 2009 at 21:11:51 PT
:0)
Ssshhhhh!
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Comment #35 posted by Hope on June 26, 2009 at 21:10:32 PT
Thank you, FoM.
It's a comfort to know someone else is thinking about this possibility, too.
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Comment #34 posted by Hope on June 26, 2009 at 21:09:19 PT
Webb Crime Bill Moving In House
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/06/24/webb-crime-bill-moving-in_n_220381.htmlExcerpt: The Senate bill was introduced by Sen. Jim Webb and would create a commission to make recommendations on the reform of everything from sentencing to drug policy. Everything, Webb has said, would be on the table. Delahunt, a senior Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, said that reform of the American justice system should begin with a broad look at drug policy."I think it's really time to do an absolute overview of the issue of drugs and come at it with an open mind," he said
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Comment #33 posted by FoM on June 26, 2009 at 20:18:29 PT
Hope
I agree. It is happening quietly.
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Comment #32 posted by Hope on June 26, 2009 at 20:11:19 PT
Something I've been thinking about...
Maybe something that makes sense and could happen...and maybe not.I've read lately about a couple of these big changes in law taking place, like Mexico's decrim and New Hampshire's Medical law... amazingly quietly as far as big media is concerned. As you guys know there was very little major coverage. There was coverage, of course, but not like they cover some things. Which of course isn't exactly unusual in cannabis and drug war news. Lots of stuff that we know, the mainstream doesn't have a clue about, until sometimes years later. The fact that this happens a lot is very interesting, in a different way, to me, lately.I know hardly anything happens anymore that the public doesn't know about to some degree ... but I'm thinking the end of prohibition is already happening... even more than we know. And we'll suddenly learn that it's done. Well... maybe not us, we'll probably know it's happening faster than a lot of people know, because we keep up with the little details. We knew about Mexico and other stuff that some people didn't even realize was happening or has happened. But it's never been big news, as you all know... like it was when they tried to do it when Bush was in the White House. I'm thinking things may be kept kind of quiet until it's all done. I wouldn't be surprised for that to happen at all.Or not.Just a thought that's been coming to mind quite a bit lately.
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Comment #31 posted by FoM on June 26, 2009 at 19:53:38 PT
MikeEEEEE
I think Republicans scream, yell and have fits when things don't go their way. They have temper tantrums. That drives me a little crazy. I wonder as I go thru life and accept what I cannot change why they act so juvenile.
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Comment #30 posted by MikeEEEEE on June 26, 2009 at 19:41:12 PT
FoM
I believe we can be assertive without being aggressive.I was not a bully as a kid, just didn't make sense to me. Research found most were from troubled environments.
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Comment #29 posted by FoM on June 26, 2009 at 19:30:27 PT
MikeEEEEE
I know it has always been hard for me to be pushy like the Conservatives are. I always tune out and walk away. People that don't like fighting just don't like it. I've always minded bullies and avoid them.
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Comment #28 posted by MikeEEEEE on June 26, 2009 at 19:24:47 PT
Progressives
If the progressives were better at dealing with difficult types, they might have the guts to push sound judgement. No guts, no glory!
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Comment #27 posted by FoM on June 26, 2009 at 19:15:06 PT
MikeEEEEE
Progressives are too nice sometimes.
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Comment #26 posted by MikeEEEEE on June 26, 2009 at 18:57:07 PT
FoM
The prohibitionists never expected the power of the Internet.As far as being progressives, I think they're trying to appease the conservatives too much, and that only delays change.Side effects: democracy moves slowly, etc.
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Comment #25 posted by FoM on June 26, 2009 at 18:36:26 PT
MikeEEEEE
It is a different time. Not as many people knew anything about Marijuana back in the 70s compared to now and we have a President who smoked Cannabis and even wrote about it in his one book. We will win this time. We have the Internet and a voice. Not to mention Progressives are in power and that helps alot.
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Comment #24 posted by MikeEEEEE on June 26, 2009 at 18:30:24 PT
Change
I think we can agree positive changes will accelerate with some pauses here and there. This is a different time than the late sevenies, I believe the last time reform peaked.
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Comment #23 posted by Hope on June 25, 2009 at 21:56:49 PT
Happy that we are making progress...
Me, too.It's been wonderful not having to hear that "Not in our life time" line in quite a while now.I was thinking the other day that this year around the new year was the first time I remember that we didn't discuss our feelings so much as we usually do about what the year might be like.It was like .... wham!... a door flew open and so much is going on... it's left me, for one, a bit speechless.It's good. Not so much feeling like I'm bleeding from my eyes reading the news.Feeling very thankful a lot lately.It's good.Did I say, "It's good"?:0)This is good. Progress is good. Our cause, I believe, is very noble... and it's so good to see and feel the progress and... it's just good.
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Comment #22 posted by FoM on June 25, 2009 at 19:28:08 PT
MikeEEEEE
I agree. My whole life I have seen the world in a different way then many people but change is coming now. Fear isn't controlling people like it was. Maybe the world or more importantly the USA will become that better place I only wished for. I am happy to see what I am seeing.
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Comment #21 posted by MikeEEEEE on June 25, 2009 at 18:31:00 PT
FoM
Sometimes these positive changes come all at once. I don't mind. Yes, we can imagine a much better world.
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Comment #20 posted by FoM on June 25, 2009 at 17:58:01 PT
MikeEEEEE
These are amazing and liberating times. I'm glad to be able to experience it all.
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Comment #19 posted by MikeEEEEE on June 25, 2009 at 17:51:52 PT
tearing down walls to freedom
I enjoyed seeing the soviet wall fall. Watching the drug war fall apart will bring the same smile to my face.
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Comment #18 posted by George Servantes on June 25, 2009 at 10:14:22 PT
Raise your voices to the sky...
..it is a good day to die.So say native Americans, I guess it was better to day then to live in this Babylon.
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Comment #17 posted by greenmed on June 25, 2009 at 09:56:59 PT
Op-Ed : A Misguided 'War on Drugs'
"Anything goes in the “war on drugs,” or so it seems. Governments around the world have used it as an excuse for unchecked human rights abuse and irrational policies based on knee-jerk reactions rather than scientific evidence. This has caused tremendous human suffering. It also undermines drug control efforts."That human rights abuses are widespread is no secret. Nor is frivolous rejection by many governments of proven, effective strategies to protect the health of drug users and communities. Both have been well documented."In 2003, law enforcement officials in Thailand killed more than 2,700 people in the government’s “war on drugs.” More than 30 U.N. member states, including China, Indonesia and Malaysia, retain the death penalty for drug offenses — some as a mandatory sentence — in violation of international law. In Russia, untold thousands of heroin users cannot obtain opioid substitution treatment because the government has banned methadone, despite its proven effectiveness."In the United States — and many other countries — prisons are overflowing because drug users are routinely incarcerated for nonviolent, low-level drug offenses. These prisoners often have no access to effective drug treatment or basic medical care. In Colombia, Afghanistan and other countries, crop eradication has pushed thousands of poppy and coca farmers and their families deeper into poverty without offering them any alternative livelihood and has damaged their health."(continued)http://www10.nytimes.com/2009/06/26/opinion/26iht-ednowak.html
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Comment #16 posted by FoM on June 25, 2009 at 09:23:23 PT
UK: Drug Policy in the Americas: At Last, a Debate
June 25th, 2009URL: http://www.economist.com/world/americas/displaystory.cfm?story_id=13905530
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Comment #15 posted by FoM on June 25, 2009 at 06:41:07 PT
Drug Treatment
I believe in drug treatment but only for those who really need help and want help. You can't force a person to quit hard drugs. It will not work. A person must come to that conclusion themselves. I appreciate how Patrick Kennedy has been treated over the years. He tries, he fails, he gets help, he gets back into politics and tries to move forward. That is not judgemental but helpful. As far as EVER using drug testing and saying that is treatment that just isn't so. That is backing a person into a corner and anger will build up and it just won't work. As far as marijuana and treatment I just don't see why adults would need treatment for using marijuana.
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Comment #14 posted by kaptinemo on June 25, 2009 at 04:29:16 PT:
The economic realities are closing in
And they're effecting the entire world. Hence this grudging inching towards legalization taking place eveywhere.The money to 'fight drugs' is drying up all over the world, as social safety net programs become more necessary than ever to cushion the shock being felt in every society, particularly the Developed ones. That means hard choices will have to be made by governments everywhere to allocate more resources into those safety net programs in order to stem social unrest. Resources that were previously used by DrugWarriors to pursue their favorite targets, the cannabists.The UN report is a grudging admittance of these realities. Whether it's dollars, yen, pounds, rubles, yuan, whatever, times are getting tighter all the time, and drug wars are something you can indulge in only if you've got the 'expendable income' to do it. And the world simply doesn't.I consider the tone of the report to be nothing more than the 'sour grapes' of a loser. The UNODC, like its' American counterpart the ONDCP, is in the same position as a crewman on the Titanic. They can continue to arrange the deck chairs all they want, but the reality is their ship is going down, sooner or later.
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Comment #13 posted by yoshi on June 25, 2009 at 01:35:32 PT:
All people must be able to grow their own
The plant itself must not be illegal. We need our little friend and his comrades opium and mushrooms. They all provide what Philip K Dick called " disinhibiting instructions" that allow us to access a vast store of innate, intuitive knowing.
Funny how all the deprogramming plants are illegal
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Comment #12 posted by John Tyler on June 24, 2009 at 21:05:29 PT
hearing the talk
I glad to hear these guy starting to “talk the talk”, but I will only be satisfied when we can all “walk the walk” in our own cannabis gardens, and in the aisles of cannabis retail outlets.
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Comment #11 posted by afterburner on June 24, 2009 at 20:18:37 PT
Baby Steps or a New Cage?
As I read Costa here and elsewhere, I see a continuing devotion to reducing supply (both gardening and commerce) with possession viewed as a disease requiring "treatment" for "marijuana addiction" to reduce demand. This is the newspeak of Republican and Conservative politicians seeking to restrict supply to those in only the most dire need. Do you want to trade incarceration by law enforcement for treatment by psychologists? Enter the new gravy train for social control.{
“The report erroneously assumes that prohibition represents the ultimate form of control when in fact it represents the abdication of control,” Nadelmann added.It is the first time, however, that the annual UNODC report has addressed the debate over prohibition versus legal regulation in a substantive manner. The report echoes a growing chorus of policymakers calling for a debate on prohibition.
}
--UN Drug Czar Gives up on Drug Free World, Admits New Strategy is Needed.
Report Acknowledges that the Violence and the Black Market for Drugs are Unintended Consequences of Current Drug “Control” Policies, But Denounces Calls to Tax and Regulate Drugs.
Drug Policy Alliance: It’s Time to Truly Debate Prohibition and Put All Options on the Table.
For Immediate Release: Wednesday, June 24, 2009.
http://www.drugpolicy.org/news/pressroom/pressrelease/pr062409.cfmThe debate must continue and intensify. We will not accept half-measures. Free the herb. The need of some policians to prevent individual gardening in favor of overpriced centralized compassion centers is a fear reaction based on too many decades of prohibition and propaganda and the resulting violence of a uncontrolled black market (defended by the very "tough on crime" politicians, the chiefs of police and the prison wardens who campaign against cannabis law reform). Free the herb.
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Comment #9 posted by rchandar on June 24, 2009 at 19:37:31 PT:
Okay, Folks...
I've screened the report. Seems like all the drug dealers are linked with violent crime, sex and human trafficking, and everyone who comes off drugs is just peachy. No mention of the Netherlands, so this is not really a change from past reports.Then: there's some concern about "cannabis cultivation" being on the rise in Afghanistan. Not a surprise there.Half of the report is devoted to sex and human trafficking, with a finger pointed at Eastern Europe in particular. Remember Kofi Annan? When UN soldiers looted and raped people in the Congo? That's why this report is so image-conscious.--rchandar
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Comment #8 posted by rchandar on June 24, 2009 at 19:08:37 PT:
HempWorld
It's possible, though I notice it's Portugal, not the Netherlands, which got the focus. I'd like to read the report: one important barometer is if they are "allowed" to retain the policy they currently have.--rchandar
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Comment #7 posted by FoM on June 24, 2009 at 17:04:32 PT
From The Drug Policy Alliance
U.S. Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske, who spoke at a press conference today announcing the new United Nations report, said legalization “is not in my vocabulary”. URL: http://www.drugpolicy.org/news/pressroom/pressrelease/pr062409.cfm
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Comment #6 posted by FoM on June 24, 2009 at 15:49:17 PT
A Question
I have been looking thru articles about the new drug czar and I haven't found anything like is in the excerpt. I'd appreciate a link if someone finds one. I know he said that about legalization but not about decrim as far as I know.Excerpt: U.S. Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske is scheduled to appear at the announcement of the report. (He has said "decriminalization" is not "in my vocabulary.")
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Comment #5 posted by ekim on June 24, 2009 at 12:29:39 PT
My top priority is to intensify efforts --
addict--one who is addicted to a practice or habit
two to give (oneself) over, as to a habit or Pursuit;
apply or devote habitually.addicted--devoted or given up (to a practice of habit)addiction-- state of being given up to some habit, practice, or pursuit.
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Comment #4 posted by FoM on June 24, 2009 at 12:23:49 PT
Counter Point
Many Drug Offenders Need Punishment, Not Just TreatmentTuesday, June 23, 2009 President Barack Obama has recently appointed Gil Kerlikowske as Director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. While Kerlikowske has some good ideas, there are a few that I take issue with.The new director has identified the misuse of pharmaceuticals like oxycontin as one of his top priorities. National and local statistics indicate that the fastest growing drug problem in the country is prescription drug abuse. Focusing resources on prescription monitoring methods is appropriate.URL: http://drugsense.org/url/DZyPQUKv
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Comment #3 posted by HempWorld on June 24, 2009 at 12:07:19 PT
Kerlikowske: "top priority is to intensify efforts
to reduce the demand for drugs which fuels crime and violence around the world."You got it wrong Kerlikowske, it's prohibition that fuels crime and violence, not 'drugs.'When you say things like this (see your quote) my faith in you plummets Mr. Kerlikowske. Have you not learned ANYTHING from the prohibition of alcohol?It is stunning, here we go again ...
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on June 24, 2009 at 11:57:35 PT
Drug Czar Calls For Increased Focus On Treatment
June 24, 2009RTTNews -- The Director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy called Wednesday for more attention on the treatment side of the nation's efforts to combat drug abuse.R. Gil Kerlikowske, the Drug Czar, said that the Obama administration was moving away from thinking about efforts to combat illegal drug use as a war."We are moving away from divisive 'drug war' rhetoric and focusing on employing all the tools at our disposal to get help to those who need it," Kerlikowske said. "We recognize addiction is a disease and are seeking public health solutions. My top priority is to intensify efforts to reduce the demand for drugs which fuels crime and violence around the world."
URL: http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=988181
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Comment #1 posted by HempWorld on June 24, 2009 at 11:51:11 PT
Just in time, for Mexico ...
In 10 years the UN will come out in favor for regulation and legalization, I predict ...
Legalize And Regulate All Drugs!
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